Friday, February 5, 2010

Goats!

After visiting my mom we spent a day with my sister, her husband, and my adorable niece (who will be one year old next week!) We learned to play Carcasonne on Xbox, the game Munchkin, and they made a very tasty soup for us with sausage, potatoes, onions, spinach, broth and a little cream. It was excellent.

Jeremy had found out about a little urban farm in NE Portland, Going Goaty. They have a big garden, 6 chickens, and two goats, all shared between several households. It was a rainy Monday, but we went to visit anyway and ask lots of questions about keeping goats.

Goats like to eat things, like jackets - especially zippers and buttons and snowshoe passes...

Yes, that girl knows when a camera comes out and she likes to pose for it. She did notice the goats a few times and seemed somewhat interested. We'll have to see how she reacts to them when she's a couple years older. The woman we talked to mentioned a farm store not too far away with some pygmy goats (or were they just miniature?). My sis may head there someday to see more goats.

After talking about goats for awhile, we went into the house and got to taste a hard cheese and a chevre that they made with the milk they get from the goats. Holy cow it was tasty! I was so amazed that they made the cheese on their own, and it seemed pretty easy. They were also very nice and gave us a little jar of milk to take home. All in all, it was a fun field trip.

4 comments:

I can't believe we were in Salem on the same weekend! Too bad we didn't know it at the time. Next time you're in town, you should definitely visit Freedom Friends (and if it's after July, odds are I will be there).

Thanks for your comment on my blog---I have really enjoyed the "God stories" when I have visited North Seattle Friends Church. I should probably go back there to visit again sometime soon.

I love following what you guys are up to on your blog and these pictures are pretty adorable (both of the goats and of your niece). Keep up the good work!

That is the first time I have seen Amaya doing the fish face. I make it at her all the time and I guess she picked up on it but never makes it at me. She is just the cutest isn't she? She looks so like Gwen when she was that age, don't you think?

Jessica 1 - yes, I saw you making fish faces at her and suspected she was attempting to copy. She has to stick her finger in her mouth and suck to get the fish face, then the finger comes out...and the fish face doesn't last long. =)

Your Homesteader

This is the blog formerly known as “Northwest Meets Midwest,” where I shared about the absurdities and adventures of living in the Midwest (having moved here from the Northwest). But really, this blog has been more and more a story of how we’ve fallen into urban farming and homesteading. So read on and enjoy our adventures in canning, preserving, mushroom-growing, local/organic fanaticism, chicken raising, designing and constructing, sewing, and attempting a little self-sufficiency in our corner of Minneapolis.